Respiration training machine enabling grasp of effect

ABSTRACT

A breathing exerciser includes: a guide unit for guiding an exercise pattern of breathing to a user; a biological information detecting unit for detecting biological information on the user; a biological information detection control unit for controlling detection of the biological information at timing associated with an exercise period during which the exercise pattern is guided; a characteristic value calculating unit for calculating a characteristic value that reflects an exercise index, based on the biological information detected according to the control of the biological information detection control unit, the exercise index being a target of breathing exercise; an effect index calculating unit for calculating an effect index based on at least two characteristic values, the effect index representing an effect of the breathing exercise; and an informing unit for informing the effect index to the user.

This application is a National Stage application of PCT/JP2006/325900,filed Dec. 26, 2006, which claims the benefit of priority of JapaneseApplication No. 2006-012879, filed Jan. 20, 2006, the entire contents ofthese applications hereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a breathing exerciser and moreparticularly to a breathing exerciser that guides an exercise pattern ofbreathing.

BACKGROUND ART

It has been verified that slow deep breathing leads to suppression ofautonomic nerves, providing an effect of decreasing blood pressure. Forexample, the document “Slow Breathing Improves Arterial BaroreflexSensitivity and Decreases Blood Pressure in Essential Hypertension”(hereinafter, referred to as the “Non-Patent Document 1”) by Chacko N.Joseph, et al., in “Hypertension, October 2005”, Volume 46, pp. 714-718,published by the American Heart Association, can be a referencedocument. Therefore, conventionally, as autonomic nervous systemexercise methods and biofeedback, studies have been conducted. Also, anumber of breathing exercisers for that have been proposed.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-277976 (hereinafter,referred to as the “Patent Document 1”) has disclosed an inventionrelated to an abdominal breathing exercising apparatus in which a sensorthat detects movement of the abdominal cavity caused by subject'sabdominal breathing is placed on his/her abdomen, a predetermined idealbreathing exercise pattern is generated, an actual breathing pattern iscompared with the ideal breathing exercise pattern to determine thedegree of matching, and a result of the determination is informed bysound or photoelectric display. Japanese Patent Application Laid-OpenNo. 2002-301047 (hereinafter, referred to as the “Patent Document 2”)has disclosed an invention related to a breathing induction apparatusincluding a breathing detecting means of detecting breathing of a livingbody, in which breathing information is extracted from a detectedbreathing signal, the information is compared for determination withtarget breathing pattern information to be induced, and a stimulussignal to be provided to the living body is controlled by a correctionvalue which is based on a difference obtained by the comparison.Published Japanese Translation of PCT Application No. 2005-535378(hereinafter, referred to as the “Patent Document 3”) has disclosed thatduring breathing exercise one or more timing parameters for operation ofbreathing are changed.

It has become clear that respiratory standstill during sleep due toairway obstruction or autonomic nervous system abnormalities, which is aso-called “Sleep Apnea Syndrome (SAS)”, not only simply reduces sleepquality, causing drowsiness during daytime active hours but alsopromotes hypertension and thereby induces harmful blood pressurefluctuations, which becomes a cause of many serious diseases such asheart diseases and brain diseases.

As treatment approaches for the SAS, there have been proposed anapparatus (CPAP) that delivers a positive pressure of air to theobstructed airway, a surgical operation for expanding the airway,medical treatment (application of an alveolar surfactant preparation tothe posterior region of the pharynx (see Published Japanese Translationof PCT Application No. 2001-507364 (hereinafter, referred to as the“Patent Document 4”)), enhancement of the muscle groups by musclestrength stimulation exercise by low frequency vibration of the musclegroups of the tongue root in the cervical region (see Japanese PatentApplication Laid-Open No. 2005-237807 (hereinafter, referred to as the“Patent Document 5”)), etc. However, any of the approaches is a greatburden for patients and the current state is that low-burden approachesto the prevention of the SAS have not been proposed.

Therefore, for the prevention of the SAS also, breathing exercise thatpatients can easily do is considered to be useful.

[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-277976

[Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.2002-301047

[Patent Document 3] Published Japanese Translation of PCT ApplicationNo. 2005-535378

[Patent Document 4] Published Japanese Translation of PCT Application No2001-507364

[Patent Document 5] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.2005-237807

[Non-Patent Document 1] Chacko N. Joseph, Cesare Porta, Gaia Casucci,Nadia Casiraghi, Mara Maffeis, Marco Rossi, Luciano Bernardi, “SlowBreathing Improves Arterial Baroreflex Sensitivity and Decreases BloodPressure in Essential Hypertension”, “Hypertension, October 2005”, theAmerican Heart Association, Volume 46, pp. 714-718

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention

However, the Patent Documents 1 to 3 all have disclosed techniques formerely approximating an actual breathing state to an ideal breathingpattern and thus there is a problem that even if exercise is done withthem, a user cannot grasp a final effect (e.g., a decrease in bloodpressure, an increase in blood pressure stability, or the like). This isbecause it is difficult to grasp a cause-and-effect relationship betweensuch an exercise action as breathing and an improvement target (e.g., ablood pressure value). Hence, there is a concern that it may bedifficult to maintain exercise continuity. Furthermore, since the userneeds to use a sensor that detects breathing, there is a problem thathandling thereof is troublesome.

The present invention is made to solve problems such as those describedabove and an object of the present invention is therefore to provide abreathing exerciser that enables a user to easily grasp an effectbrought about by breathing exercise.

Means for Solving the Problems

A breathing exerciser according to one aspect of the present inventioncomprises: a guide unit for guiding an exercise pattern of breathing toa user; a detecting unit for detecting biological information on theuser; a detection control unit for controlling detection of thebiological information before and after an exercise period during whichthe exercise pattern is guided; a characteristic value calculating unitfor calculating two characteristic values that reflect an exerciseindex, based on the biological information respectively for before andafter the exercise period detected according to the control of thedetection control unit, the exercise index being a target of breathingexercise; an effect index calculating unit for calculating an effectindex for before and after the exercise period, based on the twocharacteristic values, the effect index representing an effect of thebreathing exercise; and an informing unit for informing the effect indexto the user.

Preferably, the breathing exerciser further comprises: a storage unitfor storing a characteristic value which is based on biologicalinformation detected before or after a previous exercise period, thecharacteristic value calculating unit calculates two characteristicvalues based on the detected biological information and the biologicalinformation stored in the storage unit, and the effect index calculatingunit calculates an effect index for before each exercise period or forafter each exercise period, based on the calculated characteristicvalues.

Preferably, the detection control unit further allows the detecting unitto detect biological information during the exercise period, thecharacteristic value calculating unit calculates a characteristic valuebased on the detected biological information for during the exerciseperiod, and the effect index calculating unit further calculates aneffect index for during the exercise period, based on the calculatedcharacteristic value.

Preferably, the breathing exerciser further comprises: a changing unitfor changing the exercise pattern based on a result of comparisonbetween the effect index for during the exercise period which iscalculated by the effect index calculating unit and a predeterminedthreshold.

Preferably, the exercise index and the characteristic value each are ablood pressure value, and the effect index is a degree of decrease inthe blood pressure value.

Preferably, the exercise index is an autonomic nervous activity levelindex representing an autonomic nervous activity level, thecharacteristic value includes a heart rate fluctuation, thecharacteristic value calculating unit calculates heart rate fluctuationsbased on two heart rates respectively corresponding to two pieces ofdetected biological information, and the effect index calculating unitcalculates, as the effect index, a degree of suppression of theautonomic nervous activity level based on the two heart ratefluctuations.

Preferably, the exercise index is a blood pressure stability index, thecharacteristic value includes a baroreflex sensitivity, thecharacteristic value calculating unit calculates baroreflexsensitivities based on a heart rate fluctuation and a blood pressurefluctuation respectively corresponding to two pieces of detectedbiological information, and the effect index calculating unitcalculates, as the effect index, a degree of increase in blood pressurestability based on a difference or ratio between the two baroreflexsensitivities.

Preferably, the breathing exerciser further comprises: a storage unitfor storing an effect index associated with a previous exercise period,and the informing unit further informs a trend between the stored effectindex and the calculated effect index.

A breathing exerciser according to another aspect of the presentinvention comprises: a guide unit for guiding an exercise pattern ofbreathing to a user; a detecting unit for detecting biologicalinformation on the user; a detection control unit for controllingdetection of the biological information before and after an exerciseperiod during which the exercise pattern is guided; a characteristicvalue calculating unit for calculating two characteristic values thatreflect an exercise index, based on the biological informationrespectively for before and after the exercise period detected accordingto the control of the detection control unit, the exercise index being atarget of breathing exercise; and an informing unit for informing thecharacteristic values respectively for before and after the exerciseperiod to the user.

Preferably, the breathing exerciser further comprises: a storage unitfor storing a characteristic value which is based on biologicalinformation detected before or after a previous exercise period, thecharacteristic value calculating unit calculates two characteristicvalues based on the detected biological information and the biologicalinformation stored in the storage unit, and the informing unit informsthe characteristic values for before each exercise period or for aftereach exercise period.

Preferably, the detection control unit further allows the detecting unitto detect biological information during the exercise period, thecharacteristic value calculating unit calculates a characteristic valuebased on the detected biological information for during the exerciseperiod, and the informing unit further informs the characteristic valuefor during the exercise period.

Preferably, the breathing exerciser further comprises: a changing unitfor changing the exercise pattern based on a result of comparisonbetween the characteristic value for during the exercise period which iscalculated by the characteristic value calculating unit and apredetermined threshold.

Preferably, the exercise index and the characteristic value each are ablood pressure value.

Preferably, the exercise index is an autonomic nervous activity levelindex representing an autonomic nervous activity level, thecharacteristic value includes a heart rate fluctuation, and thecharacteristic value calculating unit calculates heart rate fluctuationsbased on two heart rates respectively corresponding to two pieces ofdetected biological information.

Preferably, the exercise index is a blood pressure stability index, thecharacteristic value includes a baroreflex sensitivity, and thecharacteristic value calculating unit calculates baroreflexsensitivities based on a heart rate fluctuation and a blood pressurefluctuation respectively corresponding to two pieces of detectedbiological information.

Preferably, the breathing exerciser further comprises: an input unit forinputting physical information on the user; and a determining unit fordetermining an exercise pattern based on the inputted physicalinformation, wherein the guide unit guides the determined exercisepattern.

Preferably, the determining unit determines the exercise pattern basedon an effect index associated with a previous exercise period.

EFFECT OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention, the user can grasp an effect broughtabout by breathing exercise.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic view of a breathing exerciser infirst and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the breathingexerciser in the first and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 3A is a diagram showing an exemplary structure of an executionpattern information storage unit in the first and second embodiments ofthe present invention.

FIG. 3B is a diagram showing an exemplary structure of an exerciseresult storage unit in the first and second embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a flow of a breathing exercise process inthe first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an exercise pattern determination processin the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing load levels of eight exercisepatterns stored in an execution pattern information storage unit 124.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for specifically describing exercise patterns.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a screen to be displayed wheninputting physical information.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an exemplary display of a breathing guide.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a detailed exemplary display of thebreathing guide based on an exercise pattern for during an exerciseperiod and a diagram showing an example of the exercise pattern.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an exemplary display of information on aneffect index for before exercise or after exercise.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an exemplary display of information on aneffect index for before and after exercise.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an exemplary display of a trend of aneffect index.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a flow of a breathing exercise process inthe second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a pattern change process in the secondembodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

1: exerciser main body, 2: cuff, 3: air tube, 4: display unit, 12:memory, 13: timer, 14: pressure sensor, 15: oscillator circuit, 16:pump, 17: pump drive circuit, 18: valve, 19: valve drive circuit, 20:control unit, 21: operation unit, 25: air bag, 24: audio output unit,30: biological information detecting unit, 100: breathing exerciser,122: pattern storage unit, 124: execution pattern information storageunit, 126: exercise result storage unit, 201: guide unit, 202:biological information detection control unit, 203: characteristic valuecalculating unit, 204: effect index calculating unit, 206: informingunit, and 208: pattern changing unit.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail withreference to the drawings. Note that the same or corresponding parts aredenoted by the same reference numerals throughout the drawings.

First Embodiment For Configuration

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic view of a breathing exerciser100 in a first embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the breathing exerciser 100 according to thepresent embodiment includes an exerciser main body 1; a cuff 2 which isplaced on a predetermined body part of a user to pressurize by airpressure; and an air tube 3 connecting the exerciser main body 1 and thecuff 2.

The exerciser main body 1 includes a display unit 4 provided so that theuser can check display content; and an operation unit 21 provided sothat the user can externally operate the exerciser. The operation unit21 includes a plurality of switches and has a menu switch 21.1 forinputting an instruction to display a variety of menus of the breathingexerciser 100; a set switch 21.2 for inputting an instruction to performa menu or each operation; a start switch 21.3 for inputting aninstruction to start exercise; left and right scroll switches 21.4; andthe like.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the breathingexerciser 100 in the first embodiment of the present invention.Referring to FIG. 2, the breathing exerciser 100 includes a biologicalinformation detecting unit 30 for detecting biological information onthe user; a control unit 20 for intensively controlling and monitoringeach unit; a display unit 4; a memory 12 in which various data andprograms are to be stored; an operation unit 21; a timer 13 thatperforms a timer operation to output timer data; and an audio outputunit 24. In the present embodiment, the biological information detectingunit 30 includes a cuff 2; an air bag 25 contained in the cuff 2; apressure sensor 14, the capacity of which changes by pressure(hereinafter, referred to as “cuff pressure”) in the air bag 25; anoscillator circuit 15 that outputs a signal with an oscillationfrequency depending on a capacitance value of the pressure sensor 14, tothe control unit 20; a pump 16 and a valve 18 for adjusting the level ofthe cuff pressure; a pump drive circuit 17 that drives the pump 16; anda valve drive circuit 19 for adjusting the degree of open/close of thevalve 18. The air bag 25 is connected to the pressure sensor 14, thepump 16, and the valve 18 via an air tube 3. Note that the biologicalinformation detecting unit 30 is not limited to such a configuration andany configuration can be employed as long as biological information forcalculating a characteristic value, which will be described later, canbe detected.

The control unit 20 is configured by, for example, a CPU (CentralProcessing Unit). The control unit 20 includes a guide unit 201 forguiding an exercise pattern of breathing to the user; a biologicalinformation detection control unit 202 for controlling detection ofbiological information at timing associated with an exercise period; acharacteristic value calculating unit 203 for calculating a biologicalcharacteristic value that reflects an exercise index, based on thedetected biological information; an effect index calculating unit 204for calculating an effect index based on at least two characteristicvalues calculated by the characteristic value calculating unit 203; andan informing unit 206 for informing the effect index calculated by theeffect index calculating unit 204 to the user.

Here, the “exercise index” is an index serving as a target (improvementtarget) for breathing exercise and represents, for example, a bloodpressure value, an autonomic nervous activity level index, a bloodpressure stability index, etc. The “effect index” is an indexrepresenting an effect of breathing exercise. The effect index for whenthe exercise index is a blood pressure value is the degree of decreasein blood pressure value. The effect index for when the exercise index isan autonomic nervous activity level index is the degree of suppressionof an autonomic nervous activity level. The effect index for when theexercise index is a blood pressure stability index is the degree ofincrease in blood pressure stability. In the present embodiment,description is made with the exercise index being a blood pressurevalue.

The “exercise period” is a period during which an exercise pattern isguided by the guide unit 201.

Note that a pattern changing unit 208 shown in FIG. 2 is shown todescribe a second embodiment, which will be described later, and thusdoes not need to be included in the control unit 20 of the breathingexerciser 100 in the first embodiment.

The guide unit 201 specifically performs a process of displayinginformation (hereinafter, also referred to as a “breathing guide”) forguiding to breathing which is based on an exercise pattern, on thedisplay unit 4. Note that although in the present embodiment descriptionis made such that an exercise pattern is guided using the display unit4, an exercise pattern may be guided by sound by the audio output unit24.

The biological information detection control unit 202 performs detectioncontrol of biological information, i.e., pulse wave information, attiming associated with an exercise period. Specifically, the biologicalinformation detection control unit 202 controls the drive of the pumpdrive circuit 17 and the valve drive circuit 19 to convert a signalobtained from the oscillator circuit 15 into a pressure signal andthereby detects pressure.

The characteristic value calculating unit 203 specifically calculates ablood pressure value (systolic blood pressure and diastolic bloodpressure) by applying a predetermined algorithm to detected pressuredata (pulse wave information). As such, as a characteristic value forwhen the exercise index is a blood pressure value, a blood pressurevalue which is the same as the exercise index is calculated. For aprocedure of calculation of a blood pressure value, any known procedurewhich is conventionally provided can be used. Note that with theabove-described configuration pulse rate (heart rate) can also becalculated by applying a predetermined algorithm to detected pressuredata.

The effect index calculating unit 204 calculates, based on calculatedcharacteristic values, effect indices respectively for before exercise,during exercise, after exercise, and before and after exercise. Eacheffect index is specifically calculated using, for example, a differencebetween two characteristic values or a ratio between two characteristicvalues. In the present embodiment, as an effect index, the degree ofdecrease in blood pressure value (ΔBP) is calculated.

An effect index for before exercise is calculated using a characteristicvalue which is based on biological information detected before(immediately before) a previous exercise period and a characteristicvalue which is based on biological information detected before(immediately before) a current exercise period. The “previous exerciseperiod” refers to an exercise period in a breathing exercise processwhich is performed earlier than a current breathing exercise process,and may be, for example, the first exercise period or may be the lastexercise period. In the following description, it is assumed that aneffect index for before each exercise is calculated based on acharacteristic value obtained before the first exercise period and acharacteristic value obtained before a current exercise period.

An effect index for during exercise is calculated using characteristicvalues which are based on biological information detected during anexercise period by the biological information detection control unit202. For example, an effect index for during exercise is calculatedbased on two characteristic values obtained during an exercise period.Alternatively, an effect index for during exercise may be calculatedbased on a characteristic value obtained before an exercise period and acharacteristic value obtained during the exercise period.

An effect index for after each exercise is, as with the effect index forbefore exercise, calculated using a characteristic value which is basedon biological information detected after (immediately after) a previousexercise period and a characteristic value which is based on biologicalinformation detected after (immediately after) a current exerciseperiod. In the following description, it is assumed that an effect indexfor after each exercise is calculated based on a characteristic valueobtained after the first exercise period and a characteristic valueobtained after a current exercise period.

An effect index for before and after exercise is calculated using acharacteristic value which is based on biological information detectedbefore a current exercise period and a characteristic value which isbased on biological information detected after the current exerciseperiod.

Although in the present embodiment effect indices are thus calculatedbefore exercise, during an exercise period, after exercise, and beforeand after exercise, at least one of such effect indices may becalculated. Alternatively, in addition to them/instead of them, forexample, an effect index may be calculated based on a characteristicvalue obtained during a current exercise period and a characteristicvalue obtained after the current exercise period.

The control unit 20 may further calculate a change (trend) of the effectof breathing exercise, based on a difference between a past effect indexand a current effect index. Alternatively, the control unit 20 maycompute a current target value based on a predetermined computationalexpression and a past effect index to calculate a shift of a currenteffect index from the target value.

The informing unit 206 specifically performs a process of displayinginformation on a calculated effect index, on the display unit 4. Theinforming unit 206 may further display a trend of the effect index onthe display unit 4.

The operation of each block in the control unit 20 may be implemented byexecuting software stored in the memory 12 or at least one of the blocksmay be implemented by hardware.

The memory 12 is a non-volatile memory, e.g., flash memory. The memory12 includes a pattern storage unit 122 in which data on a plurality ofexercise patterns are stored in advance; an execution patterninformation storage unit 124 for storing information about an exercisepattern (hereinafter, also referred to as an “execution pattern”) to beexecuted in user's breathing exercise; and an exercise result storageunit 126 for storing exercise results. Note that the storage units donot need to be included in the same storage medium (memory 12) and maybe included in different storage media. Specific examples of datastructures in the execution pattern information storage unit 124 and theexercise result storage unit 126 will be described with reference toFIGS. 3A and 3B.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are diagrams respectively showing exemplary structuresof the execution pattern information storage unit 124 and the exerciseresult storage unit 126 in the first embodiment of the presentinvention.

Referring to FIG. 3A, the execution pattern information storage unit 124includes a storage area 124A for storing user's physical information;and a storage area 124B for storing data on exercise patterns to beexecuted. In the storage area 124A, user's age data AG and sex data SXare stored. In the storage area 124B, for example, data PT1 to PT8 oneight exercise patterns is stored in ascending order of load levels. Thedata on eight exercise patterns is selected from data on a plurality ofexercise patterns stored in the pattern storage unit 122. Note that aspecific selection method will be described later.

The exercise pattern data includes information on at least exercise timeor the number of breaths, a breathing cycle, and the depth of breathing.The load level is determined by, for example, at least one of parametersincluding at least exercise time or the number of breaths, a breathingcycle, and the depth of breathing. In the present embodiment, it isassumed that the load level is determined by a breathing cycle (thenumber of breaths per certain period of time).

The execution pattern information storage unit 124 further includes apointer PN that points to data on an exercise pattern to be executedthis time (or next time) among the data PT1 to PT8 on eight exercisepatterns stored in the storage area 124B. Note that although heremanagement of an exercise pattern to be executed is performed by thepointer PN, the present invention is not limited to such a technique aslong as which exercise pattern is executed this time or which exercisepattern has been executed last time can be identified.

Referring to FIG. 3B, in the exercise result storage unit 126, exerciseresults are stored in the unit of record R. The record R includes dateand time data DT indicating exercise data and time; blood pressure dataTlb indicating a blood pressure value (characteristic value) for beforeexercise; blood pressure data Tlt and Tlt′ indicating blood pressurevalues (characteristics values) for during exercise; blood pressure dataTla indicating a blood pressure value (characteristic value) for afterexercise; effect index data Elb indicating the degree of decrease inblood pressure value (effect index) for before exercise; effect indexdata Elba indicating the degree of decrease in blood pressure value(effect index) for before and after exercise; and effect index data Elaindicating the degree of decrease in blood pressure value (effect index)for after each exercise. Note that such data is not limited to a storageformat using the record R as long as the data is stored so as to beassociated with each exercise.

(For Operation)

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a flow of a breathing exercise process inthe first embodiment of the present invention. The process shown in theflowchart in FIG. 4 is stored in advance in the memory 12 as a programand a function of the breathing exercise process is implemented by thecontrol unit 20 reading and executing this program. Note that forsimplification of description it is assumed that a series of breathingexercise process for this time is an nth one (n: natural number).

Referring to FIG. 4, a flow of a processing operation will be describedbelow. First, an exercise pattern determination process which will bedescribed later using a subroutine is performed (step S2).

Then, a biological information detection process and a characteristicvalue calculation/storage process are performed (step S4). Specifically,first, the biological information detection control unit 202 performscontrol to detect biological information and the characteristic valuecalculating unit 203 calculates a characteristic value, i.e., a bloodpressure value (e.g., a systolic blood pressure value), based ondetected biological information (pulse wave information). Then, data onthe calculated blood pressure value (data on the characteristic value)is stored in the exercise result storage unit 126 as blood pressure dataTlbn. Note that at the time of or before detecting biologicalinformation, the user may be urged to take a deep breath.

Subsequently, a calculation/informing/storage process of an effect indexfor before each exercise is performed (step S6). Specifically, theeffect index calculating unit 204 calculates an effect index, i.e., thedegree of decrease in blood pressure value, for before each exercise,based on blood pressure data Tlbn for this time which is calculated andstored in step S4 and blood pressure data Tlb1 for the first time.Information indicating the calculated degree of decrease in bloodpressure value is displayed in a predetermined area of the display unit4. By this, the degree of decrease in blood pressure value for this timewith reference to a blood pressure value for the first time can beinformed to the user. Furthermore, the calculated degree of decrease inblood pressure value for before each exercise is stored as effect indexdata Elbn.

Next, it is determined whether an instruction to start exercise has beeninputted (step S8). Specifically, it is determined whether the startswitch 21.3 has been pressed by the user. The control unit 20 waitsuntil an input of a start instruction has been detected (NO in step S8).If an input of a start instruction has been detected (YES in step S8),then processing proceeds to step S10. Note that although here breathingexercise starts after an instruction from the user has been inputted,breathing exercise may automatically start after an effect index hasbeen informed (after the process in step S6).

In step S10, the guide unit 201 guides an exercise pattern determined instep S2 to the user. Specifically, a breathing guide (e.g., how muchmore exhalation or inhalation should be performed) is displayed on thedisplay unit 4 based on exercise pattern data pointed to by the pointerPN in the execution pattern information storage unit 124.

Then, it is determined whether evaluation timing has come (step S12).The evaluation timing may be predetermined such as every five minutes,for example, after the start of exercise, or whether it is evaluationtiming may be determined by an instruction from the user. If it isdetermined that evaluation timing has come (YES in step S12), thenprocessing proceeds to step S14. On the other hand, if it is determinedthat evaluation time has not come (NO in step S12), then processingproceeds to step S18.

In step S14, a biological information detection process and acharacteristic value calculation/storage process are performed again.The processes for biological information detection and characteristicvalue calculation here can be performed in the same manner as that forstep S4. A calculated characteristic value (data on a blood pressurevalue) is stored in the exercise result storage unit 126 as bloodpressure data Tltn (blood pressure data Tlt′n if it is a second time).

Then, a calculation/informing process of an effect index for duringexercise is performed (step S16). In step S16, specifically, the effectindex calculating unit 204 calculates an effect index, i.e., the degreeof decrease in blood pressure value, for during exercise based on, forexample, the blood pressure data Tltn and blood pressure data Tlt′ncalculated and stored in step S14. Alternatively, an effect index forduring exercise may be calculated based on the blood pressure data Tlbncalculated and stored in step S4 and the blood pressure data Tltncalculated and stored in step S14. Information on the calculated degreeof decrease in blood pressure value is displayed in a predetermined areaof the display unit 4. By this, the degree of decrease in blood pressurevalue for during exercise can be informed to the user.

In step S18, it is determined whether an exercise period has elapsed. Ifan exercise period has not elapsed (NO in step S18), then processingreturns to step S10. On the other hand, if it is determined that anexercise period has elapsed (YES in step S18), then processing proceedsto step S20.

In step S20, a biological information detection process and acharacteristic value calculation/storage process are further performed.The processes for biological information detection and characteristicvalue calculation here can also be performed in the same manner as thatfor step S4. A calculated characteristic value (data on a blood pressurevalue) is stored in the exercise result storage unit 126 as bloodpressure data Tlan. Note that at the time of or before detectingbiological information in step S20, the user may be urged to take a deepbreath.

Subsequently, a calculation/informing/storage process of an effect indexfor before and after exercise is performed (step S21). Specifically, theeffect index calculating unit 204 calculates an effect index, i.e., thedegree of decrease in blood pressure value, for before and afterexercise based on the blood pressure data Tlbn for before exercise whichis calculated and stored in step S4 and the blood pressure data Tlan forafter exercise which is calculated and stored in step S20. Informationon the calculated degree of decrease in blood pressure value isdisplayed in a predetermined area of the display unit 4. By this, thedegree of decrease in blood pressure value for after exercise withreference to a blood pressure value for before exercise can be informedto the user. Furthermore, the calculated degree of decrease in bloodpressure value for before and after exercise is stored as effect indexdata Elban.

Furthermore, a calculation/informing/storage process of an effect indexfor after each exercise is performed (step S22). Specifically, theeffect index calculating unit 204 calculates an effect index, i.e., thedegree of decrease in blood pressure value, for after each exercisebased on the blood pressure data Tlan for this time which is calculatedand stored in step S20 and the blood pressure data Tla1 for the firsttime. Information on the calculated degree of decrease in blood pressurevalue is displayed in a predetermined area of the display unit 4. Bythis, the degree of decrease in blood pressure value for this time withreference to the blood pressure value for the first time can be informedto the user. Furthermore, the calculated degree of decrease in bloodpressure value for after each exercise is stored as effect index dataElan.

Next, it is determined whether there is a past effect index (an effectindex associated with a previous exercise period) (step S24). If it isdetermined that a past effect index is stored in the exercise resultstorage unit 126 (YES in step S24), then processing proceeds to stepS26. On the other hand, if a past effect index is not stored (NO in stepS24), then the breathing exercise process ends.

In step S26, the informing unit 206 displays a trend between the pasteffect index and the effect index for this time on the display unit 4.By this, the trend of the effect index is informed to the user. When theprocess in step S26 is completed, the series of breathing exerciseprocess ends.

Next, the exercise pattern determination process (S2) will be described.FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the exercise pattern determination processin the first embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, first, the control unit 20 determines whether anexercise pattern is already set (step S102). If an exercise pattern isnot already set (NO in step S102), then processing proceeds to stepS104. On the other hand, if an exercise pattern is already set (YES instep S102), then processing proceeds to step S106.

In step S104, the control unit 20 accepts an input of physicalinformation (e.g., age, sex, etc.) from the user and stores the physicalinformation in the storage area 124A of the execution patterninformation storage unit 124. When the process in step S104 iscompleted, processing proceeds to step S105.

In step S105, an exercise pattern setting/storage process is performedbased on the accepted physical information. Specifically, for example, aprocess such as that below is performed. An association table in whichage and sex are associated with identification information on anexercise pattern is stored in advance in, for example, the patternstorage unit 122. The control unit 20 identifies identificationinformation associated with user's age and sex in the association table.Then, data on an exercise pattern indicated by the identifiedidentification information is read from the pattern storage unit 122 andstored in the storage area 124B of the execution pattern informationstorage unit 124. Note that in the association table eight pieces ofidentification information respectively indicating eight exercisepatterns may be stored so as to be associated with each physicalinformation or identification information indicating one exercisepattern may be stored so as to be associated with each of physicalinformation. In the former case, for example, data on an exercisepattern indicated by identified identification information and data onseven exercise patterns with load levels continuous with a load level ofthe exercise pattern may be selected. In such a case, the pointer PN isset so as to point to data PT1 on an exercise pattern.

In FIG. 6, an x-axis shows the exercise time per exercise, a y-axisshows the load level (the number of breaths per certain period of time(e.g., minute) (i.e., a breathing cycle)), and a z-axis shows the numberof days (the number of exercises). As shown in FIG. 6, exercise patternsare set such that the load level increases as the number of days (thenumber of exercises) increases, i.e., such that the number of breathesper certain period of time decreases. Exercise pattern data PT1 to PT8respectively correspond to days 1 to 8. Note that in the drawing eachexercise pattern is a pattern that the load gradually increases from thestart of exercise (the number of breaths per certain period of timedecreases). By this, the user can warm up and then do substantialbreathing exercise. Note that during an exercise period, the load may beconstant. Alternatively, during an exercise period, not only a warm-upperiod but also a cool-down period may be provided.

(A) of FIG. 7 shows an example of an exercise pattern for a first time(corresponding to the exercise pattern data PT1), and (B) of FIG. 7shows an example of an exercise pattern for a second time (correspondingto the exercise pattern data PT2). Note that here an example of the caseis shown in which an exercise period includes a warm-up period, asubstantial exercise period, and a cool-down period.

Referring to (A) of FIG. 7, a breathing cycle T1 during the substantialexercise period is longer than a breathing cycle T′1 during the warm-upperiod and the cool-down period. Also, a depth B of breathing during thesubstantial exercise period is greater than a depth B′ of breathingduring the warm-up period and the cool-down period. Also, in (B) of FIG.7, similarly, a breathing cycle T2 during the substantial exerciseperiod is longer than a breathing cycle T′2 during the warm-up periodand the cool-down period. Also, a depth B of breathing during thesubstantial exercise period is greater than a depth B′ of breathingduring the warm-up period and the cool-down period.

Referring to FIG. 7, the breathing cycle T2 during the substantialexercise period in the exercise pattern for the second time is longerthan the breathing cycle T1 during the substantial exercise period inthe exercise pattern for the first time. As such, the breathing cyclebecomes longer as the load level increases.

In step S106, the control unit 20 reads a stored value of the latesteffect index. The effect index to be read here is, for example, effectindex data Elba (n−1) which indicates the degree of decrease in bloodpressure for before and after exercise. When the process in step S106 iscompleted, processing proceeds to step S107.

In step S107, an update of the pointer PN is performed based on the readeffect index data Elba (n−1). When the latest effect index data Elba(n−1) is within a predetermined range, the pointer PN is updated topoint to data on a next exercise pattern (an exercise pattern with aone-step higher load level). For example, when the pointer PN points tothe exercise pattern data PT2 first, an update is performed to point tothe exercise pattern data PT3. On the other hand, when the latest effectindex data Elba (n−1) exceeds the predetermined range, for example, aprocess such as that shown below is performed. Specifically, when thelatest effect index data Elba (n−1) exceeds an upper limit of the range,the pointer PN is updated to point to data on an exercise pattern whichis the one after the next one (an exercise pattern with a two-stephigher load level). For example, when the pointer PN points to theexercise pattern data PT2 first, an update is performed to point to theexercise pattern data PT4. In contrast, when the latest effect indexdata Elba (n−1) falls below a lower limit of the range, the pointer PNis not updated and is allowed to point to the same exercise pattern dataas the last one.

When the process in either step S105 or step S107 is completed,processing is returned to the main routine.

In this manner, an exercise pattern is selected according to the degreeof achievement (the degree of improvement/deterioration) of the userhim/herself. By this, when the effect index is a good result, the usercan also reach a target value earlier. Note that although in the presentembodiment when the effect of exercise is high, the load of exercise isfurther advanced to reach the target value early, the present inventionis not limited to such a technique. For example, when the effect ishigh, in contrast, the user may be allowed to continue exercise with alower load. Specifically, when the latest effect index data Elba (n−1)exceeds the upper limit, the pointer PN may not be updated and may beallowed to point to the same exercise pattern data as the last one.

Note that although in step S106 a stored value of the latest effectindex is read and an exercise pattern is selected based on the readvalue, an exercise pattern may be selected based on a stored value ofthe latest characteristic value. In this case, it is desirable to selectan exercise pattern based on blood pressure data Tlb (n−1) for beforeexercise that reflects a blood pressure value of the user during thecourse of a usual day of activities.

Note that, as described above, when the effect index exceeds apredetermined upper limit, an exercise pattern with a two-step higherload level is selected, and when the effect index falls below a lowerlimit, the same exercise pattern as the last one is selected. However,the present invention is not limited to such a process. For example,when the effect index exceeds a predetermined upper limit, an exercisepattern with a three-step higher load level may be selected, and whenthe effect index falls below a predetermined threshold which is lowerthan the above-described upper limit, an exercise pattern may be re-setagain.

The upper and lower limits may be determined in advance for eachexercise pattern.

When the pointer PN points to the exercise pattern data PT8, and animmediately preceding effect index does not fall below the lower limit,an exercise pattern may be newly re-set. For example, in such a case,exercise pattern data with a one- or more-step higher load level thanthat of the exercise pattern data PT8 is read from the pattern storageunit 122. The read exercise pattern data may be overwritten in thestorage area 124B or may be stored in another storage area. When anexercise pattern is thus newly re-set, physical information stored inthe storage area 124A may be used again.

As described above, in the present embodiment, description is made suchthat data on a plurality of exercise patterns is stored in advance inthe pattern storage unit 122. However, the control unit 20 may calculateeach parameter of an exercise pattern based on physical information on asubject and a predetermined computational expression. Alternatively,only one exercise pattern may be stored in advance.

Although in the present embodiment setting of a plurality of exercisepatterns is performed first, each time exercise is done one exercisepattern may be selected from the pattern storage unit 122.

(For Exemplary Display)

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a screen to be displayed wheninputting physical information in step S104. As shown in FIG. 8, an item(age or sex) of physical information being inputted is displayedblinking. Physical information can be inputted using the scroll switches21.4 and the set switch 21.2. Note that in order that a plurality ofusers can use the exerciser a user number may be inputted. In this case,inputted physical information and user number are stored so as to beassociated with each other. Similarly, exercise results, etc., are alsostored so as to be associated with the user number.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an exemplary display of a breathing guide instep S10. Referring to FIG. 9, a breathing guide is performed byhighlighting/not highlighting 14 blocks displayed in a verticaldirection on the screen. Also, the number of exercises (nth time) andremaining time are displayed in their respective predetermined areas.Note that a characteristic value or an effect index for during exercisemay be further displayed. Here, an example is shown in which acharacteristic value (BRS which will be described later) is displayed.

Detailed exemplary display of the breathing guide will be described withreference to FIG. 10. (A) of FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example ofan exercise pattern and (B) is a diagram showing an exemplary display ofthe breathing guide at arbitrary times t1 to t8 of the exercise patternshown in (A).

Referring to (B) of FIG. 10, in each breathing guide, a block at alocation indicating the depth of breathing is fixedly displayedhighlighted (displayed darkened). In the guides at times t1, t2, and t3during a warm-up period, fifth blocks 81 and 82 respectively locatedupward and downward from the center are fixedly displayed highlighted.In the breathing guide at time t1, the first to third blocks locatedupward from the center are displayed highlighted and the block 81 isdisplayed blinking. By this, it is possible to inform the user of howmuch more time he/she should inhale. In the breathing guide at time t2,similarly, the block 81 is displayed blinking and all of the first tofourth blocks located upward from the center are displayed highlighted.By this, it is possible to inform that it is the end of an inhalationperiod.

At times t4, t5, and t6 during a substantial exercise period, seventhblocks (blocks at both ends) 83 and 84 respectively located upward anddownward from the center are fixedly displayed highlighted. In thebreathing guide at time t5, the block 84 is displayed blinking andblocks other than the block 83 are displayed not highlighted (displayedblanked). By this, the user is guided that inhalation is finished andthus the user should move to exhalation.

At times t7 and t8 during a cool-down period, as with the warm-upperiod, fifth blocks 81 and 82 respectively located upward and downwardfrom the center are fixedly displayed highlighted. In the breathingguide at time t7, the block 82 is displayed blinking and the first blocklocated upward from the center is displayed highlighted. By this, theuser is guided that an exhalation state should be continued for on theorder of another one-half.

Note that the display mode of the breathing guide is not limited tohighlight/no highlight such as that described above; for example, thedisplay color of blocks may be changed.

FIGS. 11 and 12 are diagrams each showing exemplary display ofinformation on an effect index. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing anexemplary display of information on an effect index for before exercisein step S6 and FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an exemplary display ofinformation on an effect index for before and after exercise in stepS21. The exemplary display of information on an effect index for beforeexercise shown in FIG. 11 may be similar also for the case of an effectindex for after exercise.

Referring to FIGS. 11 and 12, each effect index is, for example,level-displayed. Level-display is performed by highlighting/nothighlighting 14 blocks, as with the breathing guide. Of the 14 blocks,seven blocks displayed on the upper side represent improvement and sevenblocks displayed on the lower side represent deterioration. Note that itis assumed that levels (level −7 to level +7) are predeterminedaccording to the value of the degree of decrease in blood pressure.

In FIG. 11, of the seven blocks located on the upper side, the first tofourth blocks from the center are displayed highlighted (displayeddarkened) and the fifth block from the center is displayed blinking. Bythis, the user is informed that a blood pressure value for this time isreduced (improved) by five levels, as compared with a blood pressurevalue for the first time. When performing such level-display, it isdesirable that, as shown in FIG. 11, the blood pressure value for thefirst time and the blood pressure value for this time are furtherdisplayed. By this, the user can grasp the degree ofimprovement/deterioration in greater detail.

In FIG. 12, of the seven blocks located on the upper side, the first andsecond blocks from the center are displayed highlighted (displayeddarkened) and the third block from the center is displayed blinking. Bythis, the user is informed that a blood pressure value for afterexercise is reduced (improved) by three levels, as compared with a bloodpressure value for before exercise. In this case too, it is desirablethat the blood pressure value (characteristic value) for before exerciseand the blood pressure value (characteristic value) for after exerciseare further displayed. By this, the user can grasp the degree ofimprovement/deterioration in characteristic value (blood pressure value)in greater detail.

Note that although here information on an effect index is informed bythe level of improvement/deterioration, the present invention is notlimited thereto; for example, the value of an effect index (the degreeof decrease in blood pressure value) itself may be informed. Whendisplaying information on an effect index, the number of exercises maybe further displayed.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an exemplary display of the trend of theeffect index in step S26. In FIG. 13, a trend of the effect index forbefore each exercise and a trend of the effect index for before andafter exercise, for the first time to this time are displayed. In thedrawing, E1, E2, . . . , En each represent an effect index for beforeand after exercise, i.e., an effect per exercise. Et1, Et2, . . . , Etneach represent an effect index for before each exercise, i.e., acumulative effect of exercise according to the progression of exercise.By the trends of effect indices thus being displayed, the user canvisually grasp short-term/long-term effects of exercise.

Note that instead of showing trends of effect indices for the first timeto this time, trends of effect indices for a certain period of time(e.g., for one week) may be displayed.

An effect index for during exercise or for after each exercise may befurther displayed. Alternatively, the user may be allowed to select aneffect index he/she wants to display and a trend of the selected effectindex may be displayed.

Note that although in the above description when the exercise index is ablood pressure value, the characteristic value calculating unit 203calculates a blood pressure value itself as a characteristic value ofthe user, when the exercise index is other than the blood pressurevalue, specifically, a characteristic value such as that shown below iscalculated.

When the exercise index is the above-described autonomic nervousactivity level index, the characteristic value calculating unit 203calculates, for example, a heart rate fluctuation as a characteristicvalue. When calculating a heart rate fluctuation, specific processes insteps S4, S14, and S20 in FIG. 4 are different from those for the caseof a blood pressure value. First, the biological information detectioncontrol unit 202 performs detection control of biological information.Based on the detected biological information, the characteristic valuecalculating unit 203 calculates basic information, i.e., heart rate, tocalculate a characteristic value. Thereafter, after a predeterminedperiod of time has elapsed, the biological information detection controlunit 202 performs detection control of biological information again.Based on the detected biological information, the characteristic valuecalculating unit 203 calculates basic information, i.e., heart rate, tocalculate a characteristic value. Based on the two heart rates thuscalculated, the characteristic value calculating unit 203 calculates aheart rate fluctuation (ΔHR). Note that for procedures of calculation ofheart rate and a heart rate fluctuation any known procedure can be used.Note also that biological information for this case is information forcalculating a heart rate fluctuation and thus may beelectrocardiographic waveform information.

When calculating a heart rate fluctuation, in steps S4 and S20, it isdesirable to inform the user at a time between the first biologicalinformation detection control and the second biological informationdetection control, to take a deep breath, for example, to display themessage “Take a deep breath” on the display unit 4. By this, even beforeor after exercise, heart rates respectively for before and after a deepbreathing state can be calculated. Note, however, that in view ofproviding stimulation to autonomic nerves, the user may be informed totake a quick breath. In step S14, even during breathing exercise, whenperforming the second biological information detection, it is desirableto inform to suspend deep breathing, for example, to display the message“Suspend breathing exercise” on the display unit 4. Note that asuspension period may be preset in an exercise pattern in advance.

In steps S6, S16, S21, and S22, the effect index calculating unit 204calculates the degree of suppression of the autonomic nervous activitylevel based on two heart rate fluctuations (ΔHR).

When the exercise index is the above-described blood pressure stabilityindex, the characteristic value calculating unit 203 calculates, forexample, BRS (Baroreflex Sensitivity) as a characteristic value. The BRSis calculated by, for example, “blood pressure fluctuation (ΔBP)/heartrate fluctuation (ΔHR)”. The BRS is an index indicating how much theblood pressure value increases when the heart rate is changed byproviding stimulation to autonomic nerves by deep breathing. The higherthe value, the more baroreflex sensitivity is reduced. That is, it canbe evaluated that blood pressure stability is low and thus the user isunhealthy.

When calculating BRS too, in steps S4, S14, and S20 in FIG. 4, a processsimilar to that for when calculating a heart rate fluctuation isperformed. Note that when calculating BRS, as the above-described basicinformation, a blood pressure value and heart rate are calculated, andbased on the calculated two of blood value and heart rate, BRS iscalculated.

In steps S6, S16, S21, and S22, the effect index calculating unit 204calculates the degree of increase in blood pressure stability (ΔBRS)based on two BRSs.

Note that when heart rate and/or a blood pressure value can becontinuously measured in synchronization with breathing, a heart ratefluctuation or BRS may be calculated by a single measurement operation(biological information detection process).

Although the above first embodiment describes that only one type ofcharacteristic value and one type of effect index are calculated, two ormore types of characteristic value and two or more types of effect indexmay be calculated and the two or more types of effect index may beinformed to the user.

Alternatively, in the present embodiment, an effect index calculatedbased on two characteristic values is informed to the user. However, aslong as the user can grasp an effect of breathing exercise, for example,instead of an effect index, two characteristic values (e.g., acharacteristic value for before the first exercise and a characteristicvalue for before current exercise, etc.) may be informed to the user. Inthis case, the effect index calculating unit 204 in FIG. 2 may not beincluded in the control unit 20. Also, instead of step S6 in FIG. 4, acharacteristic value for before current exercise calculated in step S4and a characteristic value for before the first exercise are informed.Specifically, for example, these two characteristic values aresimultaneously or alternately displayed on the display unit 4.Similarly, instead of step S16, a characteristic value for duringexercise calculated in step S14 may be informed. Instead of step S21, acharacteristic value for before current exercise calculated in step S14and a characteristic value for after current exercise calculated in stepS20 may be informed. Instead of step S22, a characteristic value forafter current exercise calculated in step S20 and a characteristic valuefor after the first exercise may be informed. Instead of steps S24 andS26, a trend of a characteristic value may be informed. In the exercisepattern determination process shown in FIG. 5, in step S106, a storedvalue of the latest characteristic value (e.g., a characteristic valuefor before exercise) may be read, and an update of the pointer (S107)may be performed based on the latest characteristic value.

Second Embodiment

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.

Although in the first embodiment during breathing exercise an exercisepattern which is determined before the exercise is not changed, in thesecond embodiment even during breathing exercise the exercise patterncan be changed. Note that the basic configuration of a breathingexerciser in the second embodiment is similar to that of the breathingexerciser 100 in the first embodiment. Thus, also here description ismade using the reference numerals used in the first embodiment.

Differences from the first embodiment will be described below.

Referring to FIG. 2, a control unit 20 of a breathing exerciser 100 inthe second embodiment further includes a pattern changing unit 208, inaddition to the units described in the first embodiment. The patternchanging unit 208 changes an exercise pattern being executed, based onan effect index for during a current exercise period.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a flow of a breathing exercise process inthe second embodiment of the present invention. The process shown in theflowchart in FIG. 14 is stored in advance in a memory 12 as a programand a function of the breathing exercise process is implemented by thecontrol unit 20 reading and executing this program. Note that processessimilar to those shown in FIG. 4 are denoted by the same step numbers.

Referring to FIG. 14, in the breathing exercise process in the secondembodiment, a pattern change process (step S17) is performed betweensteps S16 and S18.

A flowchart of a subroutine showing the pattern change process is shownin FIG. 15. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the pattern change process inthe second embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 15, first, the pattern changing unit 208 determineswhether a calculated value of an effect index for during exerciseexceeds a predetermined upper limit (step S202). If it is determinedthat the calculated value exceeds the upper limit (YES in step S202),then processing proceeds to step S204. On the other hand, if it isdetermined that the calculated value of an effect index for duringexercise is less than or equal to the upper limit (NO in step S202),then processing proceeds to step S206.

In step S204, the pattern changing unit 208 changes an exercise patternbeing executed to a higher load pattern. More specifically, for example,exercise time is made longer than a set value. Alternatively, the depthof breathing may be made greater than a set value. Alternatively, thesemay be combined or other parameters (e.g., the intensity of breathing, aratio between an exhalation period and an inhalation period, etc.) maybe changed. When the process in step S204 is completed, processingproceeds to step S206.

In step S206, the pattern changing unit 208 determines whether thecalculated value of an effect index for during exercise falls below apredetermined lower limit. If it is determined that the calculated valuefalls below the lower limit (YES in step S206), then processing proceedsto step S208. On the other hand, if it is determined that the calculatedvalue of an effect index for during exercise is less than or equal tothe lower limit (NO in step S206), then processing is returned to themain routine.

In step S208, the pattern changing unit 208 changes an exercise patternbeing executed to a lower load pattern. More specifically, for example,exercise time is made shorter than a set value. Alternatively, the depthof breathing may be made smaller than a set value. Alternatively, thesemay be combined or other parameters may be changed. When the process instep S208 is completed, processing is returned to the main routine.

As such, in the second embodiment, when such a real-time effect index asan effect index for during exercise exceeds a predetermined range, anexercise pattern can be flexibly changed to a pattern appropriate forthe user.

Note that the upper and lower limits used in the pattern change processmay be the same as those used when determining an exercise pattern inthe first embodiment.

Although in the second embodiment an exercise pattern is changed basedon an effect index for during exercise, an exercise pattern may bechanged based on a characteristic value for during exercise. In thiscase too, for example, an exercise pattern is changed according towhether a characteristic value for during exercise exceeds apredetermined upper limit or exceeds a predetermined lower limit.

A breathing exercise method to be performed by the breathing exerciserof the present invention can also be provided in the form of a program.Such a program can also be provided in the form of a program product bystoring the program on an optical medium, such as a CD-ROM (CompactDisk-ROM), or in a computer-readable storage medium, such as a memorycard. Alternatively, the program can also be provided by download via anetwork.

A program product to be provided is executed by being installed in aprogram storage unit such as the memory 12. Note that the programproduct includes a program itself and a storage medium storing theprogram.

The embodiments disclosed herein are to be considered in all respects asillustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention isindicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoingdescription, and all changes that come within the meaning and range ofequivalency of the appended claims are intended to be embraced therein.

1. A breathing exerciser comprising: a guide unit for guiding anexercise pattern of breathing to a user; a detecting unit for detectingbiological information on the user; a detection control unit forcontrolling detection of the biological information before and after anexercise period during which the exercise pattern is guided; acharacteristic value calculating unit (203) for calculating twocharacteristic values that reflect an exercise index, based on thebiological information respectively for before and after the exerciseperiod detected according to the control of the detection control unit,the exercise index being a target of breathing exercise; an effect indexcalculating unit for calculating an effect index for before and afterthe exercise period, based on the two characteristic values, the effectindex representing an effect of the breathing exercise; and an informingunit for informing the effect index to the user.
 2. (canceled)
 3. Thebreathing exerciser according to claim 1 further comprising: a storageunit for storing the characteristic value which is based on thebiological information detected before or after the previous exerciseperiod, wherein the characteristic value calculating unit calculates thetwo characteristic values based on the detected biological informationand the biological information stored in the storage unit, and theeffect index calculating unit calculates the effect index for beforeeach exercise period or for after each exercise period, based on thecalculated characteristic values.
 4. The breathing exerciser accordingto claim 1, wherein the detection control unit further allows thedetecting unit to detect the biological information during the exerciseperiod, the characteristic value calculating unit calculates thecharacteristic value based on the detected biological information forduring the exercise period, and the effect index calculating unitfurther calculates the effect index for during the exercise period,based on the calculated characteristic value.
 5. The breathing exerciseraccording to claim 4 further comprising: a changing unit for changingthe exercise pattern based on a result of comparison between the effectindex for during the exercise period which is calculated by the effectindex calculating unit and a predetermined threshold.
 6. The breathingexerciser according to claim 1, wherein the exercise index and thecharacteristic value each are a blood pressure value, and the effectindex is a degree of decrease in the blood pressure value.
 7. Thebreathing exerciser according to claim 1, wherein the exercise index isan autonomic nervous activity level index representing an autonomicnervous activity level, the characteristic value includes a heart ratefluctuation, the characteristic value calculating unit calculates heartrate fluctuations based on two heart rates respectively corresponding totwo pieces of detected biological information, and the effect indexcalculating unit calculates, as the effect index, a degree ofsuppression of the autonomic nervous activity level based on the twoheart rate fluctuations.
 8. The breathing exerciser according to claim1, wherein the exercise index is a blood pressure stability index, thecharacteristic value includes a baroreflex sensitivity, thecharacteristic value calculating unit calculates the baroreflexsensitivities based on a heart rate fluctuation and a blood pressurefluctuation respectively corresponding to two pieces of detectedbiological information, and the effect index calculating unitcalculates, as the effect index, a degree of increase in blood pressurestability based on a difference or ratio between the two baroreflexsensitivities.
 9. The breathing exerciser according to claim 1 furthercomprising: a storage unit for storing the effect index associated withthe previous exercise period, wherein the informing unit further informsa trend between the stored effect index and the calculated effect index.10. The breathing exerciser according to claim 1 further comprising: aninput unit for inputting physical information on the user; and adetermining unit for determining an exercise pattern based on theinputted physical information, wherein the guide unit guides thedetermined exercise pattern.
 11. The breathing exerciser according toclaim 10, wherein the determining unit determines the exercise patternbased on the effect index associated with the previous exercise period.12. A breathing exerciser comprising: a guide unit for guiding anexercise pattern of breathing to a user; a detecting unit for detectingbiological information on the user; a detection control unit forcontrolling detection of the biological information before and after anexercise period during which the exercise pattern is guided; acharacteristic value calculating unit for calculating two characteristicvalues that reflect an exercise index, based on the biologicalinformation respectively for before and after the exercise perioddetected according to the control of the detection control unit, theexercise index being a target of breathing exercise; and an informingunit for informing the characteristic values respectively for before andafter the exercise period to the user.
 13. (canceled)
 14. The breathingexerciser according to claim 12 further comprising: a storage unit forstoring a characteristic value which is based on the biologicalinformation detected before or after the previous exercise period,wherein the characteristic value calculating unit calculates twocharacteristic values based on the detected biological information andthe biological information stored in the storage unit, and the informingunit informs the characteristic values for before each exercise periodor for after each exercise period.
 15. The breathing exerciser accordingto claim 12, wherein the detection control unit further allows thedetecting unit to detect biological information during the exerciseperiod, the characteristic value calculating unit calculates thecharacteristic value based on the detected biological information forduring the exercise period, and the informing unit further informs thecharacteristic value for during the exercise period.
 16. The breathingexerciser according to claim 15 further comprising: a changing unit forchanging the exercise pattern based on a result of comparison betweenthe characteristic value for during the exercise period which iscalculated by the characteristic value calculating unit and apredetermined threshold.
 17. The breathing exerciser according to claim12, wherein the exercise index and the characteristic value each are ablood pressure value.
 18. The breathing exerciser according to claim 12,wherein the exercise index is an autonomic nervous activity level indexrepresenting an autonomic nervous activity level, the characteristicvalue includes a heart rate fluctuation, and the characteristic valuecalculating unit calculates heart rate fluctuations based on two heartrates respectively corresponding to two pieces of the detectedbiological information.
 19. The breathing exerciser according to claim12, wherein the exercise index is a blood pressure stability index, thecharacteristic value includes a baroreflex sensitivity, and thecharacteristic value calculating unit calculates the baroreflexsensitivities based on a heart rate fluctuation and a blood pressurefluctuation respectively corresponding to two pieces of detectedbiological information.
 20. The breathing exerciser according to claim12 further comprising: an input unit for inputting physical informationon the user; and a determining unit for determining an exercise patternbased on the inputted physical information, wherein the guide unitguides the determined exercise pattern.
 21. The breathing exerciseraccording to claim 20, wherein the determining unit determines theexercise pattern based on the effect index associated with the previousexercise period.